Charles Haywood was the vicar of Beckindale in 1914. He was the husband of Edith Haywood and father to two sons John and Arthur, and a daughter Rose Haywood. After hearing about the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, Charles told Joseph Sugden that he believed this would cause a world war. Joseph ignored Charles and thought that was ridiculous. When England decided to go into war, Charles thought it was the right decision, however Rose strongly disagreed.